Colony Ship Early Access Release Thread [GAME RELEASED, GO TO NEW THREAD]

[Technomancer]

Does this game, like Age of Decadence, prevent the player from accessing huge chunks of content simply because you didn't put the points into correct stats during character creation?

Sadly stats checks suffered quite a lot in CS. Its mostly about charisma, and very few STR or DEX checks early in the game. INT happens once in a blue moon and doesn't unlock anything (in AoD INT unlocked a special Kingmaker plot permutation in Teron and was used to help in solving particularly hard mechanisms or figure out things). Don't even recall a single CON check so far. Finally PER checks are rendered pointless by companions system (which developers realized as a flaw, which in turn means even fewer PER checks going further into the game).

 

[Trithne]

All checks other than CHA are rendered moot by companions - I think there's a couple of checks that actually allow you to combine the stats of companions to pass them too.

Checks are mostly moved to skills, but CHA pops up again here - the "Tech" skills are binary either/or score checks, you either have the score and succeed, or you don't have the score and you fail. In contrast, talk checks have their effectiveness further modified by your CHA.

 

[Agesilaus]

Second, your faction and choices not stats govern the access to content

I remember there being a well which required a certain amount of constitution to interact with it without dying. I put a lot of points into it but apparently never reached the threshold and deprived myself of boosting something else in order to access some other stuff on top of that. Was there anyway to access the well part without the necessary stats?

Still liked the world and lore though, might be enough of a reason to check out Colony Ship

Are you talking about the well in the slums of Maadoran? The way to access it is to visit that location during your next playthrough as someone who can hold their breath for longer than 5 seconds. For now, just pay the guy at the entrance to the slums to show you around and keep you safe, it's a dangerous world out there.

 

[Priest]

Second, your faction and choices not stats govern the access to content

I remember there being a well which required a certain amount of constitution to interact with it without dying. I put a lot of points into it but apparently never reached the threshold and deprived myself of boosting something else in order to access some other stuff on top of that. Was there anyway to access the well part without the necessary stats?

Still liked the world and lore though, might be enough of a reason to check out Colony Ship

Are you talking about the well in the slums of Maadoran? The way to access it is to visit that location during your next playthrough as someone who can hold their breath for longer than 5 seconds. For now, just pay the guy at the entrance to the slums to show you around and keep you safe, it's a dangerous world out there.

Actually I beat the game a few weeks ago. Figuring out where to go and what to do wasn't much of a challenge because at some point you're gonna start getting railroaded due to all the different stat and skill checks that you can't pass. I usually don't feel like replaying a game immediately after completing it but I guess this one encourages it

 

[Latelistener]

This is marketing malpractice. I repeat:

I think Vault Dweller needs to try to aggressively upsell Colony Ship to Age of Decadence owners. That's your surest bet - people who you know have already paid money for that sort of game. Find a way to remind them you exist.

I think I can call myself an AoD veteran (200-300 hours) and I did purchase Colony Ship, but combat was fucking unbearable in the demo and from what I heard all they did was adding "Hero" mode to further mock the players instead of admitting some design issues.

I was trying to tell about those combat issues before the EA release here on Codex, but I wasn't heard. So I thought if people are enjoying it then all is good, but apparently it isn't.

I'll try the game in the near future and will leave a review. Maybe something has changed in the combat department.

 

[Vault Dweller]

I think I can call myself an AoD veteran (200-300 hours) and I did purchase Colony Ship, but combat was fucking unbearable in the demo and from what I heard all they did was adding "Hero" mode to further mock the players instead of admitting some design issues.

The reaction was exactly the same as with AoD. 85% of players had no problems with combat, 15% thought it was unfair, unplayable, and mean.

https://steamcommunity.com/app/648410/discussions/0/3172198151251693365/?ctp=93
The people in this thread (player-submitted builds) have absolutely no problem with combat and can kill just about anything. Solo or full party, maxed key stats or balanced, melee or ranged.

Anyway, what were your issues with the demo? For the record, a LOT changed since then (it's been more than 2 years), not just the easy mode.

 

[Sibylla]

Concerning people who dislike space scifi can we pretend the game takes place in a big submarine instead?

 

[Agesilaus]

Second, your faction and choices not stats govern the access to content

I remember there being a well which required a certain amount of constitution to interact with it without dying. I put a lot of points into it but apparently never reached the threshold and deprived myself of boosting something else in order to access some other stuff on top of that. Was there anyway to access the well part without the necessary stats?

Still liked the world and lore though, might be enough of a reason to check out Colony Ship

Are you talking about the well in the slums of Maadoran? The way to access it is to visit that location during your next playthrough as someone who can hold their breath for longer than 5 seconds. For now, just pay the guy at the entrance to the slums to show you around and keep you safe, it's a dangerous world out there.

Actually I beat the game a few weeks ago. Figuring out where to go and what to do wasn't much of a challenge because at some point you're gonna start getting railroaded due to all the different stat and skill checks that you can't pass. I usually don't feel like replaying a game immediately after completing it but I guess this one encourages it

I don't think you get railroaded by stat/skill checks so much as you go down particular plot paths and they have skill/meta-knowledge limitations. It's true that you flat-out can't do certain things without the right stats, and you can only bump your stats up so much (I assume you know about the surgical upgrade canisters and machines). But on the skill point side there are plenty of points to gather if you are patient and inquisitive (or have good meta-knowledge of the game world). If you can't pass a certain skill check, you may be able to gather the necessary xp by exploring new map locations and finding various quests/combats, then return.

But putting the stat/skill aside, the biggest "limitation" will be the exclusivity of the branching plot paths. So absolutely the game involves replaying it and going down different paths, and it works well because the paths are very unique story-wise and you won't really understand the full story until you see it from all the different angles. This is also made feasible because a play-through is relatively short; A single playthrough of AoD takes a tiny fraction of the time it takes to complete Kingmaker or PoE. Especially if you don't focus on combat.

This is marketing malpractice. I repeat:

I think Vault Dweller needs to try to aggressively upsell Colony Ship to Age of Decadence owners. That's your surest bet - people who you know have already paid money for that sort of game. Find a way to remind them you exist.

I think I can call myself an AoD veteran (200-300 hours) and I did purchase Colony Ship, but combat was fucking unbearable in the demo and from what I heard all they did was adding "Hero" mode to further mock the players instead of admitting some design issues.

I was trying to tell about those combat issues before the EA release here on Codex, but I wasn't heard. So I thought if people are enjoying it then all is good, but apparently it isn't.

I'll try the game in the near future and will leave a review. Maybe something has changed in the combat department.

Like Vault Dweller pointed out above, the combat has changed a lot since the combat demo. I don't remember your comments specifically, but whether ITS was listening or not they definitely improved things. Also, now that the combat takes place as part of a story, it is much more interesting. Definitely don't let the old combat demo sour you on the real game.

 

[Alienman]

Latelistener

Why do you dislike the combat? I have not followed the game, I'm just waiting for 1.0 release.

 

[Latelistener]

I think I can call myself an AoD veteran (200-300 hours) and I did purchase Colony Ship, but combat was fucking unbearable in the demo and from what I heard all they did was adding "Hero" mode to further mock the players instead of admitting some design issues.

The reaction was exactly the same as with AoD. 85% of players had no problems with combat, 15% thought it was unfair, unplayable, and mean.

https://steamcommunity.com/app/648410/discussions/0/3172198151251693365/?ctp=93
The people in this thread (player-submitted builds) have absolutely no problem with combat and can kill just about anything. Solo or full party, maxed key stats or balanced, melee or ranged.

Anyway, what were your issues with the demo? For the record, a LOT changed since then (it's been more than 2 years), not just the easy mode.

Yeah, but the first 5 or so "Most Helpful" negative reviews on Steam are all about combat system. And they were all written this year. I remember some of them pointing out your inability to listed to the feedback. I don't have a stance in the matter yet, just stating what I read recently.

Latelistener

Why do you dislike the combat? I have not followed the game, I'm just waiting for 1.0 release.

Mind you I'm not a hardcore TBS fan, but I have played many notable games in the genre, but even then it was hard for me to the point of being unbearable. Also, it was from the demo 3 years ago.

The main issue was the design of the combat encounters. Since arenas were small as in AoD and we're dealing with firearms here, you could be one shot from the other side of the map on your first turn without being able to do anything if you happen to have a bad throw. And considering that demo was all about combat, this was with 100% combat characters. Mostly all fights were like: you either do something exceptional on your first turn or you die. And it felt like you're always starting a fight while being at a tactical disadvantage. One combat encounter in the demo had little to no cover and since enemies have 360 degrees line of sight, positioning didn't matter, only your stats and RNGesus. Other than that some stuff like, for example, inability to shoot through enemies. So if an enemy 1 blocks enemy 2, you couldn't shoot enemy 2.

 

[Vault Dweller]

And they were all written this year. I remember some of them pointing out your inability to listed to the feedback.

We can listen to people who dislike the combat system (15%) and want us to change it or listen to people who like it (85%) and want us to improve it, but not both.

The main issue was the design of the combat encounters. Since arenas were small as in AoD and we're dealing with firearms here, you could be one shot from the other side of the map on your first turn without being able to do anything if you happen to have a bad throw.

Activate a defensive gadget before a fight.

One combat encounter in the demo had little to no cover and since enemies have 360 degrees line of sight, positioning didn't matter, only your stats and RNGesus.

Feats and grenades (smoke, flashbang, etc) matter a lot more.

 

[HoboForEternity]

how did AoD early access sales compare to CS? i thought, judging by review amount, CS sold way way better in its early access stage.

 

[Trithne]

The main issue was the design of the combat encounters. Since arenas were small as in AoD and we're dealing with firearms here, you could be one shot from the other side of the map on your first turn without being able to do anything if you happen to have a bad throw.

Activate a defensive gadget before a fight.

This was a turning point for me, as someone who initially felt the combat was bad and basically just praying to RNGesus. Learning how to effectively use the gadgets made for a huge difference in how combats went.

Other than that some stuff like, for example, inability to shoot through enemies. So if an enemy 1 blocks enemy 2, you couldn't shoot enemy 2.

This cuts both ways, and having someone with an energy shield body block enemies from attacking a wounded character is nice.

I think part of the problem is the early game fights in The Pit suffer from a few issues
- It's early game and all your stats suck so you miss a lot.
- They almost all take place in cramped environments where you don't really have any room to maneuver or manipulate line of sight.
- It's early game so you don't have a lot of gadgets or perks to work with.

This makes these fights tend to be about finding a spot of cover and plinking away at each other until one side falls over. In contrast, fights in The Factory give you a lot more freedom to be tactical, and you've got more toys to play with.

 

[Shadenuat]

What problem is there with not solving skill checks you want, isnt learn by use system supposed to fix that? Ie tag 3 make some reasonable build and go?

 

[Jaedar]

Does this game, like Age of Decadence, prevent the player from accessing huge chunks of content simply because you didn't put the points into correct stats during character creation?

It is way easier (last time I played, but I expect it to still be true) to 'do everything' in CS. Make the pc high cha/int and a noncombat skill mule, and recruit every companion and spec them for pure combat. Trying not to die during combat can be a bit challenging, and some stealth encounters might be out of your reach, but it's quite doable overall.

(friendship is canonically Homo Sapiens greatest asset)

 

[The_Mask]

Turns out, you boys are actually making the real Fallout 2, straight from the horse's mouth:

 

[Elhoim]

What problem is there with not solving skill checks you want, isnt learn by use system supposed to fix that? Ie tag 3 make some reasonable build and go?

Yep, that's how it is. There might be some side check that you might have to come later depending on where you go, like if you go to the armory very early there are some lockpick 6 things that you can probably access only after doing some more exploration on other areas.

 

[Vault Dweller]

What problem is there with not solving skill checks you want, isnt learn by use system supposed to fix that? Ie tag 3 make some reasonable build and go?

Not if one wants to master all skills and pass all checks.

 

[Latelistener]

And they were all written this year. I remember some of them pointing out your inability to listed to the feedback.

We can listen to people who dislike the combat system (15%) and want us to change it or listen to people who like it (85%) and want us to improve it, but not both.

I can't say whether it's good or bad (personally I think it's bad as you will rarely hear useful negative feedback from those 85%), but if things are going as they are going and the whole existence of Iron Tower is at the question, maybe something has to be changed.

The main issue was the design of the combat encounters. Since arenas were small as in AoD and we're dealing with firearms here, you could be one shot from the other side of the map on your first turn without being able to do anything if you happen to have a bad throw.

Activate a defensive gadget before a fight.

One combat encounter in the demo had little to no cover and since enemies have 360 degrees line of sight, positioning didn't matter, only your stats and RNGesus.

Feats and grenades (smoke, flashbang, etc) matter a lot more.

I'm not asking for an advice for the demo that came out 3 years ago. I'm just retelling what I told you back then.

I've played it extensively and completed several times, but it didn't alter my impressions. In fact, the more I played and learned about combat and gadgetry, they worse those impressions were.

 

[Vault Dweller]

... as you will rarely hear useful negative feedback from those 85%...

On the contrary. The extensive system changes were driven by the 85%, because liking the game enough to support it doesn't mean loving everything blindly. Fallout, Planescape, and Arcanum are my top 3 games, which doesn't mean that I'm oblivious to their flaws or wouldn't suggest improvements if they were still in development.

... but if things are going as they are going and the whole existence of Iron Tower is at the question, maybe something has to be changed.

It's business as usual. AoD didn't fare any better and wasn't rated any higher.

 

[ScrotumBroth]

I'm not watching, reading or playing any of it until the full release. My balls are bursting!

 

[xuerebx]

I'm not watching, reading or playing any of it until the full release. My balls are bursting!

Keep a bowl under your testicles so that you'll live up to your username.

 

[Goral]

Most popular Polish youtuber (among gamers, overall he's in the top 50 among Polish youtubers when it comes to the number of subscribers) has covered your game and speaks about it rather fondly:

 

[just]

polish fans already firing up their torrent programs

 

[Goral]

polish fans already firing up their torrent programs

Nowadays not many Poles pirate things when they can just buy cheap keys on Kinguin or g2a (or buy Gamepass via VPN for about 30 USD per year) or just buy things on Steam/GOG. I personally have bought 5 copies of Colony Ship (4 on GOG and 1 on Steam, directly there without any resellers, over 450 PLN which today is over 108 USD) and some of my colleagues have bought the early version too already. I'm pretty sure we're among the top countries when it comes to the number of sales and if you would omit countries where CS cost less than 15 USD we would be much higher. In Argentina or Russia you could have bought the game for around 1 USD for example.